Can opener



April 1953, D. FARANDATOS 2,636,259

Filed Apri l 2 l 1 9 50 Patented Apr. 28, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT.OFFICE CAN OPENER Denis Farandatos, New York, N. Y. Application April21, 1950, Serial No. 157,282

7 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a can opener. The modern can opener is a handoperated device of remarkable cutting efficiency which has severalimperfections, among which are its tendency to release the neatlysevered can top into the contents of the can from whence it must berecovered, an unsatisfactory and usually an unsanitary operation, andits tendency in the cases where the operator leaves a fragment of metalstill connecting the can with its top, to cut the fingers of theoperator in fumbling with it to open it.

These problems exist in the home where they are suificient, but in therestaurant, where hundreds or even thousands of cans must be opened in asingle day, the problem develops substantial magnitude and becomesacute. There the problems of sanitation and eificiency, emphasized bymunicipal ordinances and enforced by inspectors, are controlling, andproblems of employee safety and insurance are considerable.

It is an object of this invention to make a can opener capable ofmeeting the severe demands of the restaurant and of continuous use, thatwill reduce unsanitary treatment of the contents, and which will preventthe cutting of the hands of the operators.

Another object of the invention is to make a self-contained magneticunit, which is capable of being maintained at peak efficiencycontinuously, and which does not require attachment to a source ofcurrent, thus eliminating the use of transformers to step down thecurrent from power lines. It is to be understood that the ordinary powercircuits could be employed if desired, but in the preferred form of theinvention, which will be described hereinafter, selfcontained units areused.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent asthe description of the preferred embodiment proceeds.

In the drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to like partsthroughout the several views,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a can opener constructed in accordancewith the principles of this invention; and

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the can rest broken away horizontally to showconcealed working parts.

In the figures, wherein like numerals indicate like parts, ID indicatesa table or other support upon which a can opener, having a can rest II,is held by screws l2. The can rest has a vertically aligned mast support13 consisting of a guide having the same exterior shape as channel l4and a flange l5 which overlaps one edge of the mast. The mast is a metalchannel which is vertically movable through the mast support l3 andcarries at its upper end a cutter head l6 which has a retractable cutterl1 and a crank it.

The construction of the cutter as-such is not a part of this inventionand the cutting means are consequently indicated to be of a knownvariety in which the cutter is raised out of operating position bylifting the crank to the dotted line position, an incision in the cantop being made by pressing the crank from the dotted to full lineposition. By turning the crank around after it has been lowered to fullline position the can is rotated and the cutter I! severs itsv top.

The novelty in this invention includes a support l9 which is attached byscrews 20 to the cutter head [6, projecting outward to a positiondirectly over the top of a can being cut. This holder 19 has adownwardly directed, tubular part 20 which extends to within a shortdistance of the position of a can top during the operation of thecutter. Inside this tubular support 2!! is an electromagnet 21 in awater-proof casing, the coil ofthe magnet being grounded to the frame ofthe machine at 22, which is regarded as its negative side, and at itsother end is connected by a lead 23 to a copper strip 24 which ismounted on and insulated from the inside of channel I l by a strip ofinsulation 25.

The can rest II is hollow and supports, within the hollow, switchcontacts 26, 21. The contact 26 has a rider 28 which projects outwardlyfrom one side and engages the strip 24 so that contact is made betweenthe switch contact 26 and the electromagnet in all positions of the mastI l. The other contact 2'! is connected by a lead 29 to the terminal 36of a battery case 3! within which are shown three batteries 32 of thetype employed in flashlights of the fountain pen type. The battery casemay be made to contain as many batteries of whatever capacity is decidedupon as most satisfactory for a particular use. A pivoted spring contact33 grounds the other end of the battery to the frame of the can opener.A removable cover 34 encloses the battery compartment and can be removedat will to replace the batteries.

The contacts 26, 21 are mounted at their ends on a block of insulatingmaterial 35 and are not connected to each other. The connection fromcontact 21 to contact 26 and the electromagnet In operating the opener acan 41 is moved against the outer edge of blade 33, forcing the bladeall the way in between the contacts 28, 2! and energizing theelectromagnet, the cut is made, the can top is attracted and held by theelectromagnet, the cutter [l is retracted by'rais-- ing the lever 18,which simultaneously lifts. the I mast, the cutter head and theelectrcmagnet with its electromagnetically gripped can top, and the canis removed from the rest. The spring 39 pullsthe-bl'ade- 3:8 through thecontacts 2%, but does not turn off the current to the electromagnetuntil the can has been withdrawn. When the current to the magnet is cutoff it releases the can top which falls onto the rest and is knocked offinto. a receptacle by the next can.

The operating end of the electromagnet may conveniently be placed in aplane somewhere between the lowest operating position of the blade andits upper inoperative position. fhe electromagnet need not be in contactwith the can top, although it may be, during the cutting operation. Itspull is calculated to be sufficient to lift the can top out of the can.as soon as it has been severed, in those cases in which it does notengage the can top in the first instance.

An advantage of the invention is that the operators hands never touchthe contents of the can in retrievin a'severed can top.

As many apparently widely different embodiments of the present inventionmay be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, it isto be understood that the inventionis not limited to the specificembodiments.

What is claimed is:

l. A can opener having a hollow can rest and a mast support, acutter-supporting, channelshaped mast slidably mounted in said support,cutter means mounted on said mast, an electromagnet carried by said mastover the can rest,

a contact strip mounted on insulation inside the channel of said mastand connected to said magnet, a knife switch having a pair of contactsinsai'd can rest, one of said contacts being in sliding engagement withsaid strip, a battery holder in said rest having a terminal connectedto. the other of said contacts and a grounded terminal, a slot in thecan rest aligned with said contacts a, pivoted switch blade extendinginto said slot in position to be moved by a can into engagement withsaid contacts, and spring means attached to said blade having strengthenough to disengage it from said contacts.

2. A can opener having a can rest and a mast support, a cuttersupporting mast slidably mounted in said support, an electromagnetcarried by said mast over the can rest, a switch having a pair ofcontacts in said can rest, one of said contacts being connected to saidmagnet, a battery holder in said rest having a terminal connected to theother of said contacts and a grounded terminal, a slot in the can restabove the said contacts, a pivoted switch blade extending into said slotin position to be moved by a can into engagement with said contacts, andspring means attached to said blade having strength enough to disengageit from said contacts.

3. A can opener having a base adapted to hold a" can, a verticallyadjustable mast, a cutter carried by said mast, an electromagnet carriedby said mast beside said cutter, a current supply circuit connected tosaid magnet, a switch electrically connected to the said supply circuitof said magnet, and switch operating means biased to'ofi position andconnected to said switch, projecting from said base in a positionadapted to be: operated, by the emplacement of a can to be opened, toenergize said magnet.

4. A can opener having a vertically adjustable cutter supporting mast,an electromagnet carried by said mast beside said cutter, a source ofelectrical energy connected to said electromagnet through a switch,means operableto close said switch by the action of positioning a can inalignment with said cutter, and means to open the switch when the can isremoved.

5. A can opener havingv a cutter adapted to excise a can,electromagnetic means associated with said cutter adapted to impose anattractive magnetic force upon a part of the can removed. from the canby said cutter, current supply means connected to said electrcmagnet,andswitch means connected to said current supply means biased to onposition, said switch means having a part adapted to be engaged by a canand moved to on position to energize said electromagnet when such can isemplaced to be opened.

6'. In a can opener having a cutter constructed and arranged to make anincision in a can top and to out out the top, an electromagnet havingits operative end located in magnetically attractive proximity to thetop of a can being opened, battery m ans connected to saidelectroinagnet, and switch means constructed, positioned and arranged tobe engaged and operated by a can being emplaced in the opener foropening, in the battery-electromagnet circuit.

7. The opener of claim 6 in which the switch is spring biased to offposition and is engaged and closed by movement of the can into cuttingposition.

DENIS FARANDATOS.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,262,994 Stokes Apr. 16, 1918 1,713,823 Edlund May 21, 19292,386,490 McLean Oct. 9, 1945 2,456,307- Noblett Dec. is, 19% 2,494,616Hensel Jan. 17, 1950 2,579,139 Jenson Dec. 18, 1951

